CHC Breakfast to Focus on Teens in Crisis and What We Can Do About It

PALO ALTO, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Each year, Children’s Health Council (CHC) hosts a breakfast and panel
discussion on a topic of interest to parents and the community. These
events bring together well-known speakers, writers and professionals
whose insights can help with the critical job of raising our children
and teens. The 3rd CHC Breakfast in this series will be held
on Tuesday, February 2, 2016, at the Sharon Heights Golf and Country
Club, Menlo Park from 8:30am – 11:00am. Tickets are $100 per person, and
will include breakfast and an interactive panel discussion on the
serious issue of teen anxiety and depression in our community and what
we can do about it. The event is hosted by Co-Chairs Calla Griffith and
Catherine Harvey, CHC, and its Board of Directors, with 100% of event
proceeds going toward CHC’s Teen Initiative.

“Right now, we are facing a pressing issue in the community we love and
call home: how to keep our kids from being over-stressed and
overwhelmed,” said Dr. Ramsey Khasho, Director of The Center and
Director of Clinical Services for Sand Hill School at CHC. “Sadly, the
teen suicide rate in Palo Alto and the neighboring communities is 4-5
times the national average. We are a community in crisis.”

Many concerned community members from local schools, hospitals, clinics
and organizations around the Bay Area have pulled together to draw
greater attention to this community challenge. While much effort and
many gains have been made to build awareness and advocacy, a gap in
service delivery geared towards teens struggling with anxiety and
depression still remains. The CHC Breakfast will bring experts together
to offer a variety of perspectives on teens in crisis, and offer ideas
on what we can do about it.

The CHC Breakfast will feature a panel of parents and experts, moderated
by CHC’s Dr. Ramsey Khasho. The panel will include:

Julie
Lythcott-Haims—Author, New York Times Bestseller, How to
Raise an Adult. Ms. Lythcott-Haims will share her compelling views
about parenting and what she calls “overparenting” and its effect on
kids.

Denise
Pope—Co-Founder, Challenge Success. Ms. Pope, a senior lecturer
at the Stanford University Graduate School of Education, is a long-time
advocate for teens. Ms. Pope will talk about Challenge Success and how
schools and families can create more balanced and academically
fulfilling lives for their kids.

Chris
Harris, MEd—Director of Esther B. Clark School at Children’s
Health Council. Mr. Harris works daily with students at EBC School at
CHC, which focuses on kids with social emotional and attention
challenges.

The CHC Breakfast follows a November 2015 call-to-action meeting in
which CHC brought 60 key community leaders, professionals, parents and
philanthropists together to collaborate and take action to confront the
problem of teen anxiety, depression and suicide. The group, which
included parents and key representatives from Stanford, Palo Alto
Medical Foundation, Kara Grief Counseling Services, Project Happiness,
Acknowledge Alliance, Bay Area Children’s Association and more,
identified critical gaps in services and barriers to treatment. The
group also prioritized top concerns, the most urgent of which is
removing the stigma of talking about teen suicide. “The CHC Breakfast is
the next actionable step to bring the discussion on teen anxiety,
depression and suicide into the community to enable safe, non-judgmental
conversations among families, kids, teachers, and professionals,” said
Dr. Khasho.

“I am grateful that our community cares so passionately for our children
who are in crisis,” said Dr. Rosalie Whitlock, Executive Director, CHC.
“It has been heartwarming to see how the community is coming together in
love and action to address teen depression and suicide. By bringing the
discussion about teen suicide into the public conversation, I believe
that we can reduce the stigma of talking about teen suicide, and help
our children suffering from mental health issues find the treatment they
need.”

We hope you will join Children’s Health Council’s Dr. Ramsey Khasho and
an extraordinary panel of parents and experts for an interactive panel
discussion, breakfast, and community call to action, to realize the
promise and potential for stressed and overwhelmed teens. For more
information, visit http://www.chconline.org/chcbreakfast/.

About Children’s Health Council

Children’s Health Council (Palo Alto) has been serving kids, youth and
teens in San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties as well as the greater San
Francisco Bay Area for over 60 years. The goal of the agency is to
remove barriers to learning regardless of language, location, learning
style or ability to pay. At CHC, we specialize in ADHD, Learning
Differences, Anxiety & Depression and Autism with our Center, two
schools, Community Clinic, and Parent and Teacher Education. No matter
how big or how small the issue is, we’ll help you navigate your child or
teen’s journey together. www.chconline.org